Manchester United have received a transfer blow in their pursuit of Real Madrid center-back Raphael Varane. The Frenchman has reportedly denied any advances made by United manager Jose Mourinho and is willing to fight for his place at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The 23-year-old was one of the major transfer targets for Manchester United manager Mourinho this season, who is looking to strengthen his defense, despite signing Eric Bailly from Villarreal this summer. However, the deal looks dead as Varane has decided not to reunite with his former manager, as reported by Marca.

Manchester United has undergone a rapid makeover under their new manager with the additions of Bailly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to strengthen their team’s spine this summer. However, they are keen to add another experienced center-back to the mix to form a solid defensive partnership with Chris Smalling at the back.

Varane was brought to Real Madrid by Jose Mourinho in 2011 for $11 million, when the player was just 18 years old. The Frenchman has since developed into a world class stopper and has slowly climbed up the ranks to feature in the first-team squad despite competition from Sergio Ramos and Pepe.

The 23-year-old made 26 appearances for Los Blancos in the La Liga last season despite stiff competition. He had an average of seven defensive actions per match and won 51% of his duels. He earned 5 yellow cards and 1 red card last season, according to Squawka.

Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane is a huge admirer of the Frenchman and understands that the player’s best years are ahead of him. Both Ramos and Pepe are slowly nearing retirement age and this is where Varane will be an important player for the club’s foreseeable future.